


Millie the Paperback Writer

by Entwinedlove



Series: The Great October Challenge 2017 [79]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-28
Updated: 2017-10-28
Packaged: 2019-07-29 08:05:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16260101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Entwinedlove/pseuds/Entwinedlove
Summary: Millicent is socially awkward. Her Parkinson-in-laws sometimes feel like sharks.





	Millie the Paperback Writer

**Author's Note:**

> Written for NaNo's Misfits's 31 Days of Fanfiction Challenge  
> day 28 prompt: a character doing your real life job
> 
> [ ](https://i.imgur.com/8sTiUqD.jpg)

Millicent tried to brush some of the cat hair off of her dark green dress but when none of it budged she gave up.

"Are you ready to go?" Princeton asked. He was standing by the Floo with a few envelopes in his hand, waiting.

Millicent took a deep breath. It was fine, she could visit with her in-laws. _Just be calm, it won't be so bad._ They travelled by Floo to Princeton's grandparents' house and Millicent's shoe caught in the grate as she was being welcomed into the home. "Oh, it's good to see you, good to see you," Gran Parkinson said, daintily wrapping an arm around Millicent in a hug and then pressing her recently coloured lips against Millicent's cheek. Millie smiled and stepped away from Gran to wipe at the lipstick smudge. Hopefully, it didn't stay too long on her cheek to start itching. _It sucks being allergic to one of the ingredients that's in almost everything beauty product out there._

Millie walked on through the kitchen to greet Grandpa Parkinson and his relation Hugh. The kinship between Grandpa and Hugh was convoluted, something like sister's cousin's son or something. Millie could never remember. She leaned over and gave both a hug and greeting and then found a corner where she could hopefully disappear into the wallpaper.

From the corner where Millie had settled herself, she could hear Elizabeth and Pippa, Princeton's mum and sister, greet Gran. Princeton had disappeared to talk with his cousins and wouldn't appreciate his wife hanging around while they talked about manly things that she wasn't interested in.

"Oh, Millie, there you are!" Pippa said, coming into the room. "What are you doing in here? And what are you wearing? Don't you have, oh, nevermind, anyway, you won't mind if I leave this here, would you?" she asked, dropping her overly large designer handbag on the other seat next to Millie.

"Hey Pippa," she greeted, but the other girl had already turned and left the room. Millie relaxed her shoulders a bit. Pippa was always the most well dressed of the bunch, even better than Pansy when she happened to grace them with her presence. Hopefully, that simple question would be all that Pippa said about Millie's dress. _I know it looks like a burlap sack. There's not much in my size and even with magic, there's no such thing as a miracle cure to being overweight._ Millie stamped down her thoughts and tried not to listen to the conversations that filled up the house around her.

From the kitchen, Elizabeth and Gran were talking loudly as Gran put the last touches on the meal and directed the house-elf to set the table. "You know she doesn't work," Elizabeth was saying, sounding exasperated, "I tried to help them when I can, but you know the prices of things these days. I don't know how he manages. Half the time I think they just go without and you know how upset that makes me. He's my son!"

Millie pushed the words away. She knew they were discussing her. Despite Princeton's weak denials that they were doing fine financially, Millie's lack of employment was always brought up. Maybe not directly with her but she was made aware of how the others felt about it.

"What are you doing in here all by yourself, Millicent?" Uncle Anders said from the doorway. "You still writing?

"Yes, I'm still writing."

"That naughty stuff, right? I'd read it. It's probably pretty good, right?"

"The last story I finished is about 505 pages long, but I haven't—"

"500 pages! Whoa, gee, what did you write a novel?"

Hugh was passing through the hall and stopped to listen. "Oh, you're writing a novel, hmm? What's it about?"

"It's that naughty sort of thing, you know," Anders answered with a nudge and wink.

Hugh let out a gruff little laugh. "Well, why haven't you sold any books yet? You know, back in my day, we didn't bother doing anything unless we could make a little money out of it. No money, then it's not worth doing. You going to be making money with this writing stuff, hmm?"

Millie tried not to wince as she answered, "Well, no, it's complicated. I can't actually sell this because it's—"

"Well, then what are you doing with it? Might as well get on getting with something else if you can't make money doing it. Isn't that right, Anders?" Hugh turned and walked on to his destination.

Anders gave her a grin. "Don't worry about him, you know how he makes up things. Earlier he was telling Gramps about how he met the French Minister back in the '70s and went skinny dipping with her or something only nobody knew that's who it was at the time." He paused like he expected some sort of answer but before Millie could come up with something else to say, Gran called from the kitchen.

"Anders? You ready for dinner? Come in here, tell everyone it's time to eat!"

Millie sighed. _Only a few more hours of this._

**Author's Note:**

> My in-laws are not actually this bad, though the conversation about not doing anything unless it makes money did happen.


End file.
